Five months — and a lifetime — ago, Orlando City supporters unfurled a tifo during the season opener that read a simple message: “We’re not ... leaving.”
It was a statement of both loyalty and frustration. Lions fans wanted a change. Their club knew it. And in the opening MLS is Back Tournament, their frustration was answered.
The Lions won Group A and a top seed in the knockouts during a resounding trio of opening matches. More important, the team embodied new coach Oscar Pareja’s push to be the protagonist.
Now, the Lions look to carry that front-foot confidence into their Round of 16 matchup against the Montreal Impact on Saturday.